Two more weeks left here, for my time in London. It’s going by so fast, I know I’m going to miss the bloody shit outta it, but alas all good things must come to an end. Monday I had a day off from work, Tuesday I had work, and today I had work half day then I had a fun activity after with my program.
Monday, August 3
Today I got the day off. The first thing I did was look for my phone. I called their nonemergency number and they let me know it was unlikely I was going to get it back :(. So after that I ddin’t want it to ruin my day, so I got some coffee and went to the Imperial War Museum to pick up where I left off. Ok, so in my last blog posts, I wrote how I’m incredibly interested in history, welp that’s why I spent 3 in a half hours at this museum (and I had already spent an hour another day with Carly but we had to leave since the museum was closing – and it was only on 1 floor). The amount of time I spent on each floor was basically an hour each. The second floor was about WWII and how the civilians and families were effected by the fire bombings. They also had a special on D-Day and quickly went through the war, since they have another museum dedicated specifically for WWII. The third floor was basically exhibits that you had to pay for. The fourth floor was the floor I spent the most time on and it was about the Holocaust. This is something that interests me the most because 1, I took a class solely about the Holocaust, 2 I’ve already seen the D.C. Holocaust Museum, and 3, since I know so much about it learning it from the perspective of another country is even more interesting since they focus on different things. Something like that is so fascinating to me because it’s crazy to me how a civilized, developed country would commit such a horrible, disgusting, inhuman act of cruelty. I will never fully understand it…
After that I had to somehow navigate myself somewhere else. I chose Covent Garden because well I haven’t been there yet and I don’t want to go to far to where I can’t find my way back (because remember I don’t have a phone). I walked to the famous market where there were a shit ton of tourists and people. I was trying to find out where the best shopping was when I came across “Galeria Melissa”. I mean, come on, if you see a store with your name on it, of course you’re going to go in. I walked in and realized it was a designer shoe store. I spoke to the ladies working there and they informed me that they were having a sale and that all of the shoes are made out of recycled plastic (even fucking better). I guess Melissa is a pretty renown designer who has worked with all of the top celebrity designers. The ones that she’s worked with just this past collection (and I’m sure there are more) are Karl Lagerfeld, Vivienne Westwood and Disney. I had to buy shoes with my name on it, so I settled for some sale shoes that were a collaboration design with Melissa x Jason Wu (even better cos they have my name and a collaboration with an azn who’s last name starts with a W LOLOL). After I bought my shoes, I went downstairs to their exhibition of the new collection. It was some cool walk through with lights and music and psychedelics.
Ok, ok, enough about how awesome it was to finally have a designer with my name on it, and a cool one at that. Next I got some pizza from this street food Italian place, and it was the best pizza I’ve had in London! I walked some more and ended up in Chinatown (which is literally 2 blocks wide) and got some boba. I finally felt at home because that was the most concentrated asians I have seen in one area in London. After I went home!
Imperial War Museum
These pamphlets were apparently dropped by US planes, urging civilians to get out of the cities and move to the countryside (I didn’t know that so that’s why it was interesting)
The biggest dishonor was losing your sword in Japan and because of their heinous war crimes this was the perfect punishment.
Melissa
Foooood & Chinatown
Wednesday, August 5
Today I had to go to work, but luckily it was only for a couple of hours. I finished my research project that I’ve been working on for the last 3 weeks or so, which I am really proud of. Then I went back to the apartment since we were having an exit orientation around 2pm. All of the girls (I say girls because there are only like 3 guys in the program) met up in this tiny room where our program directors went over what we learned and how to apply it to the outside experience. They made us share our cover letters, which of course I’m a pro at because I’ve already written like 3 or 4 at my time here in London, so I shared mine since people were too scared to share theirs.
After that we met up again in Shoreditch to go on a Street Art Tour/Workshop. Here they taught us the history of the area and why street art was so important to the people who lived there. He mentioned some famous street artists like Bambi, Stik, Pez. He even showed us a Banksy painting. The best part was when we got to spray paint our own murals. Mines was beautiful because all I did was paint my name “MEL” everywhere to the point that the dude that was teaching us how to graffiti called me out multiple times LOL. But, hey, that’s what I do best.
Me, Carly, Laila, and Drea were starving after we finished, so we went to this K BBQ place that was HOMG amazing. I got some awesome kimchi fried rice, chicken wangs, and SOJU!!!! Now I’m at home with a headache…
The end.
Street Art Tour
Stik’s simple art represents homeless people, since they’re usually in discreet places, this is because we cast homeless people out in unwanted places and the stick figures don’t have a mouth because homeless people don’t usually have a voice.
Bambi
Banksy, protected by glass. The guide didn’t seem to like him/her very much (or at least the hype surrounding him/her)
I forgot the artist’s name, but he always paints this character with a house somewhere in it. This is represents how this area will soon be destroyed and in it’s place will be a 5 star luxury hotel since this area is being regentrified.
I forgot the name of this artist, but he is Brazilian. He often paints the indigenous population of Brazilians in very Western attire and attributes. This is reflective of the Brazilian gov’t trying to make the Brazilian people conform to this society that they’re obviously are not.
OUR TURN TO PAINT
Carlyyy bein Carlyyy
“MEL” WILL BE REMEMBERED BY EVERYONE SINCE THAT’S ALL I WROTE THE WHOLE TIME (AND ON EVERYONE’S BOARD).
I wrote Mel a thousand times on Laila and Drea’s board. The guy teaching us to spray paint drew lines over them, saying that this is the biggest insult someone can do. Then he nicely outlined my name on the very right hand corner.
My kimchi fried riceeeee was amazing
Gold Opium 